In November 2013 I designed and led a weeklong workshop with 2nd and 3rd year Media and Interaction design students at ECAL, Lausanne. Students were encouraged to design and prototype musical processes and instruments using Ototo and other electronics.

Workshop Brief:

Sound production has never been more accessible, it’s now possible to make music on everyday computers, smartphones and tablets. The processes that generate the sounds are invisible inside these black boxes, and the traditional link between the action and the result from acoustic instruments is lost to both the performer and audience.

This workshop uses Ototo, a printed circuit board synthesiser that can be used with conductive materials and sensors to quickly prototype sound interactions. With this as a starting point we will explore how we can represent sound as a physical processes, and create a large scale music making machine!